Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
~33~4
COPING ASSEMBL~ F~R A NON-UNIFORM PARAPET ~ALL
~ACKG~OUND AND SU~M~RY OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates generally to a coping assembly for
capping or covering the edge of a building ~tructure wall and, more
particularly to such a coping assembly that is adapted to accommcdate
walls of varying or inconsi~tent thicknesses.
Frequently a masonry or ~rame wall, euch as a parapet wall
extending above the roof 11ne of a building structure, for example must
be covered along its upper edge to prevent weather elements from entering
throl~h the top or edge of the wall. Such walls are typically finished at
the top or edge with coping assembliea, which can consist of masonry
constructions, composition constructions, or metal coping assemblies.
Such ~etal coping a~semblies have been found to be particularly
~uccessful in providing a ~aterproof cap, as well as an aesthetically
pleasing appearance, especially when coupled with a decorative fascia
member.
Gne disadvantage to typical metal coping assemblies is the fact
that the coping assembly components must be fabricated off~site and then
delivered to the building construction jobsite. However, the walls on
which the coping is to be installed are frequently not constructed to
exact de~ign widths or thicknesses, or even to consistent widths or
thicknesses. In f~ct, ~ome masonry wall~ vary as much as three to four
inches from the specified design width, and the widths of 6uch walls can
also vary considerably along the length of ~ given wall. Such variations
thus require careful field measurements, frequently necessitating that
the ordering and ~pecifying of coping materials cannot be done until
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after the wall is completed, thus causing constructio~ delays and
possible premature deterioration of unprotected walls while the building
contractor awaits delivery of coping oomponents.
Th~ the need has ~risen for a coping as~embly for a ~all, ~uch
as a parapet wal], that can accommodate a variety of wall widths, and
which can compensate for varying widths along the length of a given wall.
The present invention seeks to ~eet thi~ need by providing a coping
assembly for a parapet wall on a building structure that can provide a
weather-tight 6eal while acccmmodating varying or inconsistent wall
widths, with the parapet wall having generally vertical inner and outer
vertical ~urfaces interconnected by a generally horizontal upper 6Nr~ace.
Coping assemblies according to the present invention include a preferably
resilient clip member, a clip attachment device for attaching the clip
member to the vertic~l outer ~urface oi the parapet wall, a fascia
member, a top plate member, and a top plate anchoring device for
anchoring the top plate to the vertical inner surface of the parapet
wall.
The clip me~ber includes a generally vertical clip leg for
overlapping a portion oi the vertical outer ~urface of the parapet wall,
a generally horizontal clip leg for o~erlapping a portion of the
horiæontal surface of the parapet wall, and a resiliently deflectable
~loping clip leg extending transversely to ~he horizontal clip leg. The
vertical clip leg has a lower hooked clip edge thereon, and the sloping
clip leg has an upper ho~ked clip edge thereon.
The fascia member ~imilarly has a generally vertical fascia leg
and a generally horizontal fascia leg, with the vertical fascia leg
having a lower hooked fasci~ edge or drip edge ~hereon for interlockingly
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en~aging the lower hooked clip edge. The generally horizontal fascia leg
overlaps at least a portion of the resilient 610ping clip leg and has
general]y downw~rdly-directed protrusion thereon for enga~ing the upper
hooked clip edge in a ~napped-on relationship after the lower hooked
fasci~ edge and the lower hooked clip edge have been interlockingly
engaged with one another.
The top plate ~em~er al~o has a generally vertical plate leg
for overlapping a portion of the vertical inDer ~urface of the parapet
wall and a generally horizontal plate leg for overlapping a portion o~
the hori~ontal ~urface of the parapet wall. The horizontal plate leg
extends outwardly to overlap a ~ortion of the resilient sloping clip leg
and to underlap a portion o the horizontal ~ascia leg 6uch that the
horizontal plate leg i6 resiliently and cl~mpingly engaged therebetween
when the fascia member i6 snapped onto the clip member. This feature
allows the coping assembly to acconmodate a variety of parapet wall
thicknesses or widths between the vertical inner and outer æurfaces of
the parapet walll while ~till ~ubstantlally preventing the entry of
moisture or debris.
A plate anchoring device i6 al~o provided for anchoring the
vertical plate leg to the vertical inner 6urface of the parapet wall.
Preferably, sNch plate anchoring i~ provided by a hold-down member having
a generally vertical hold-down leg for overlapping a portion of the
vertical inner sur~ace o~ the parapet wall and a generally horizontal
hold-down leg for overlapping a portion of the horizontal ~ur~ace of the
parapet wall. The vertical hold~down leg i~ dispo6ed between the
vertical inner ~urface of the parapet wall and the vertical plate leg and
includes a lower hooked hold~down edge thereon. The vertical plate leg
~2~
has a lower hooked plate edge or drip edge in this preferred form of the
inventio~ for interlockingly engaging the lower hooked hold-down edge.
Preferably a fastener is provided for attaching the vertical hold-down
leg to the vertical ~urface ol the parapet wall.
Although not essential to the invention in most applications, a
~heet-like sealing membrane can be installed in an overlapping
relationship with the vertical ~nd horizontal sur~aces of the parapet
wall, extending either ~nder or over the re~ilient clip member in order
to provide additional rain and conden~ation protection. As a further
option, a sealing member or ~ealant bead can be provided between the
horizontal fascia leg and the horizontal plate leg for even ~urther
sealing protection.
Additional objects, adv~ntages, and ~eatures of the present
invention will becone apparent from the following description and
appended claims, taken in ~onjunction with the accompanying dr~wings.
~RIBF D~SCRIPTIC~ CF THE DRAWINGS
.
Figure 1 i~ a partial perspective view of an ex~mplary parapet
wall having an ex~mplary preferred form of a coping a~sembly according to
the present invention installed thereon.
Figure 2 is a partial cross-sectional view æho~ing a variation
on the coping a~sembly of Figure 1.
Figure 3 illustrates a further variation on a fascia member of
a coping assembly according to the present invention.
Figure 4 illustrate~ still another variation on a fascia member
for a coping assembly according to the present invention.
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FiguTe 5 is a partial cross-section~l view, illustrating ætill
another alternate construction of a coping assembly aocording to the
present invention.
Figure 6 is a partial per6pective view, similar to that of
Figure 1, but illustrating a further alternate embodiment, with an
alternate arrangement for æecuring the resilient clip ~nber to the
parapet wall.
DETAILED DESCRIPTIoN OF THE PlEFi~ED EU~oDI~ENTS
Figures 1 through 6 illustrate various preferred embodiments of
a coping assembly acc~rding to the present in~ention, shown for purposes
of illustration in a parapet wall installation. One skilled in the art
will readily recognize, however, that the present invention is not
restricted to the coping assembly constructions and configurations
depicted merely for purposes o illustration in the drawings, and further
is equally applicable to capping applications other than vertical walls
or parapet walls for building structures.
Figure 1 illustrates one preferred embodiment o~ the present
invention, depicting an exemplary application o~ the invention in a
building structure 10 having a generally vertical parapet wall 12
disposed at or adjacent the edge of a roof for the building structure 10.
The parapet ~all 12 includes a generally vertical inner 6urface 14 and a
generally vertical outer surface 16, with the inner and outer vertical
~urfaces 14 and 16 being interconnected by a horizontal 6Nrface 18. An
exemplary coping assembly 26 according to tbe present invention 6e~ves aæ
a covering or cap for the parapet wall 12 in order ~o prevent the seepage
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of rain, snow, or c~nden~ation onto the top hori~ontal ~urface 18 of the
parapet wal] 12.
The exemplary coping assembly 26 generally includes a re~ilient
clip m~mber 30, a fascia member 50, a top plate member 70, and preferably
a hold~down m~mber 90. The clip member 30 ha6 a generally vertical clip
leg 32, a generally horizontal clip leg 34) and a generally sloping clip
leg 36, which i6 resiliently deflectable durin~ in6tallation of the
fascia member 50 so as to exert a generally upwardly and
inwardly-directed resilient biasing force or clamping force indicated
diagr~mmatically by the arrow 4S. The vertical clip leg 32 is adapted
for overlapping at least a portion of the vertical outer sur~ace 16 of
the par~pet wall 12 and includes a lower hooked clip edge 38 protruding
generally downw~rdly and outwardly therefrom. The horizontal clip leg 34
is similarly adapted for overlapping at least a portion of the generally
horizontal 6urface 18 of the parapet wall 12, and includes an upper
hooked clip edge 40 thereon. An attachment fa6tener 42, which can be any
of a number of well-know~ conventional ~astener devices, is provided for
attaching and aDchoring the vertical clip leg 32 to the vertical outer
surface 16 of the parapet wall 12.
The faseia member 50 includes a generally vertical fascia leg
52, having a lower hooked fa~cia edge or ~rip 56 ~nd a geDerally
horizontal fascia leg 54 having a generally downwardly-directed
protru6ion or discontinuity 58 thereon. The l~wer hooked ~ascia edge 56
is adapted for interlockingly engaging the lower hooked clip edge 38,
after which the fascia member 50 can be ~ecurely snapped onto the
resilient clip ~ember 30, with the downwardly-directed protrusion 58
engaging the upper hooked clip edge 40 of the clip member 30. As the
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fascia member 50 i6 snapped onto the clip member 30, the resilient
sloping clip leg 36 is deflected downwardly until the downwardly-directed
protrusion 58 engages the upper hooked clip edge 40, as mentioned above.
Preferably, a number of the downwardly-directed protrusions 58 are
disposed on the generally horizontal fascia leg 54 for interlockingly
engaging the upper hooked clip edge 40 along the length of the fascia
member 50, thus assuring a ænug fit and retention of the fascia member
50, with the resilient ~loping clip leg 36 exerting the above-mentioned
resilient biasing or clamping fGrce 48 on the overlapping horizontal
fascia leg 54.
The top plate member 70 includes a generally vertical plate leg
72 and a generally horizontal plate leg 74. Tbe horizontal plate leg 74
extends across the top of the parapet wall 12 to overlap a ~ubstantial
portion of the borizontal surface 18, as well as overlapping a portion of
the resilient sloping clip leg 36 and underlapping a portion of the
horizontal fascia leg 54 in order to be resiliently and clampingly
engaged therebetween when the fascia member 50 is snapped onto the clip
member 300
In the preferred embodiment depicted in Figure 1, the hold-dowm
member 90 includes a generally vertical hold-down leg 92 and a generally
horizontal hold-down leg 94, with $he vertical bold-down leg 92 having a
hooked hold-down lower edge 96 thereon for interlockingly engaging the
hooked plate edge 78 of the top plate member 70. ~n anchoring fastener
98, which can be any of a number of well-known conventional fastening
devices, is provided for anchoring the generally Yertic~l hold-down leg
92 to the vertical inner surface 14 of the parapet wall 12. Thus, by way
of the above-mentioned interlocking engagement between the lower hooked
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hold~down edge ~6 and the lower hooked plate edge 78, along with the
resilien-t and clamping engagement of the horizontal plate leg 7~ between
the resilient sloping clip leg 36 and the horizontal fascia leg 54, the
top plate member 70 is ~ecurely retained on the parapet wall 12, and thus
the coping assembly 2B 6erves as a cap or cover to protect the parapet
wal~ 12. In this regard, althougl- not ~elt to be nece~sary in most
applications, an optional 6ealant member or bead 60 can be provided
between the horizontal plate leg 74 and the horizontal fascia leg 54 in
order to further minimize the poss1bility of moisture seepage onto the
parapet wall 12. In addition, although it is n~t deemed to be necessary
for the ~uccess of the coping assembly ~6 in most applications, a
~heet-like sealin~ membrane 20 can be installed in an overlapping
relationship with the pQrapet wall 12, and ~an 6ealingly extend between
the clip memker 30 and the parapet wal] 12, as ~hown in Figure 1, or
alternately can sealingly extend between the clip member 30 and the top
plate member 70.
Preferably, adjacent fa6cia member~ 50 along the parapet wall
12 are disposed end-to-end in an overlapping relationship with one
another, and 6imilarly adjacent top plate members 70 are similarly
overlapped, as s~wn by the overlapping ends 76 in Figure 1. In
addition, the preferred generally horizontal fascia ~nd plate legs 54 and
74, respectively, are sloped slightly downwardly and inwardly for
moisture run-off, with the preferred horizontal fa~cia leg 54 having a
sloped inner edge portion 62.
One o~ the primary advantages of the pre~ent invention, which
applies equally tD al] of the ~mbodiments disclos~d and described herein,
is the provision of the 6eparate fascia member 50 ~nd top plate member
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70, with the horizontal plate leg 74 "telescopically" extending a
~Iflicient d.istance between the clip member 30 a~d the fascia member 50
6uch that ~ariations or inconsistencies in the width or thiclune~s o~ the
parapet wall 12 can be accommodated due to the telescoping
interrelationship between the top plate member 70 and the fascia member
50, with their horizontal legs 74 and 54, respectively, bein~ in an
overlapped relationship. In this regard, width variations among various
parapet walls, or width inconsistencies along a given parapet wall, can
be accommodated within a predetermined range of such variations or
incon~istencies which i~ ge~erally equal to the amount of overlap between
the horizontal fascia leg 54 and the horizontal plate leg 74. Further in
this regard, it ~hould be noted that if the par~pet wall is too narrow,
such that the horizontal plate leg 74 would extend inwardly between the
horizontal fa6cia leg 54 and the sloping clip leg 36 to an extent that lt
would abut or interfere with the upper hooked clip edge 40, the
horizontal plate leg 74 can be field trimmed to an approximately correct
width to allow the cop~ng assembly 26 to be assembled generally as ~hown
in Figure 1.
It 6hould be noted that the generally downwardly-directed,
discrete protru6ions S8 formed in the horizontal ~ascia leg 54 ~hown in
Figure 1 can be any o~ a nNmber of leak-proof protrusions known to those
~killed in the art, with one preferred form of the protrusions 58 being
the joint ~ormed by an apparatus m~rketed under the trademark Tog-L,Lvc,
and manufactured by BTM Corporation of Mary~ville, Michigan.
Fi~ure 2 illustrates ~n alternate construction of a coping
as~embly 12~ according to the present invention, uhich i~ generally
similar to the coping a~sembly 26 described above and illu~trated in
~ ,~ ) h ~ ~J 3 ~
Figure 1, except that the hold-down member 90 is eliminated and the top
plate member 170 is anchored directly to the vertical inner ~urface 14 of
the p~rapet wall 12.
The alternate top plate member 170 includes a generally
horizontal plate leg 174 and a generally vertical plate leg 172. A
recessed portion 182 is formed in the generally vertical plate leg 172,
with a fastener opening 180 being provided within the recessed portion
1~2 for receiving an anchoring fastener 198 in order to anchor the
vertical plate leg 172 to the vertical inner surface 14 of the parapet
wall 12. In all other respecte the coping ~sembly 126 of Figure 2 is
~imilar both in function and configuration, to the coping as~embly 26
shown in Figure 1.
Figure 3 illustrates another variation on the present
invention, wherein an ~lternate fascia member 250 i~ generally similar,
both in func~ion and configuration to the fascia member 50 shown in
Yigure 1, with the exception of the provision of one or more generally
elongated downwardly-directed protrusions 25~ along all or at least a
6ubstantial portion of the length of the ~ascia member 250. The
downwardly~directed protrusions 258 can be ~ormed by 6tamping, punching,
or other means well-known to those skilled in the art during the
formation of the fhscia member 2S0.
Fi~ure 4 illustrate6 ~till another variation on the present
invention, wherein the alternate fascia member 350 is generally ~imilar
to the fascia member 250 ~hown in Figure 3, except that a generally
continuous, downwardly-directed protrusion 358 is formed by molding,
extruding, stamping, bending, or other ~orming methods well-known to
those skilled in the art, and results in a generally smooth, or at least
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generally continuous, upper surface of the horizontal fascia leg 354. In
all other respects, the alternate fascia members 250 and 350 of Figures 3
d 4, respectively, are sioilar to the fascia member 50 shown in Figure
1, both in cor-figuration and function.
A further alternate construction of a coping a6sembly accordiDg
to the present invention is illustrated in Figure 5. In Figure 5, the
alternate coping assembly 426 i8 generally similar to those described
above in the previously-di~cussed embodiments, except that the clip
m~mber 430 includes a generally vertical riser portion 446 between the
resilient sloping clip leg 436 and the upper hooked clip edge 440~
Similarly, the fascia member 4S0 includes a somewhat higher vertical
fascia leg 452, with a sloping portion 466 formed in the otherwise
generally horizontal fascia leg 454, with one or more downwardly-directed
protrusions 458 fonmed in the 610ping portion 466 for engaging the upper
hooked clip edge 440. It should be noted that the configuratlon of the
downwardly-directed protrusion or protrusions 458 can optionally be that
of the discrete protrusions 58 ~hown in Figures 1 or 3, or by the
generally continuous protrusion 358 shown in Figuu~e 4. Such alternate
construction, as 6hown in Figure 5, can be particularly`advantageous or
desirable in applications where a higher pro~ile ~ascia member is desired
for aesthetic or other purposes in a given ~pplication. In all other
respects, the alternate copi~g assembly 426 is ~imilar in ~oth
configuration and ~unction to the previously-discussed exemplary and
illustrative embodiments 6hown in Figures 1 through 4.
Finally, Figure 6 illustrates still another alternate
construction of the present invention, which i6 al~o generally similar to
those previously discussed. In Figure 6, however, an alternate,
3 ~ ~
preferab]y resilient clip member 530 is 6ecured to the parapet wall 12 by
way of ~1 intermediate tab strip member 58g, having a generally
horizontal 6trip leg 585 and a generally vertical strip leg 586, with a
number of tabs 587 formed in an initially outwardly-protruding, generally
horizontal oonfiguration.
The clip member 530 has corresponding slots 541 formed in its
Yertical clip leg 532 for receiving the tabs 587, which are then bent or
otherwise deformed generally downwardly to interlockingly attach or
secure the clip m~mber 530. Prior to inserting the tabs 587 through the
610ts 541, however, the tab ~trip member 584 is ~ecured to the parapet
wall 12 by way of any of a number of well-known high-strength
construction adhesives, with the adhe~ive penetrating through a plurality
of adhesive holes 588 through the horizontal strip leg 585 in order to
enh nce the 6trength of the bond. An optional attachment fastener 5~2
can be ~nployed in lieu of, or in addition to, the construction adhesive
in suitable applications where fasteners or anchors can be used on the
parapet wall 12.
Tab ~trip member6 similar to the tab fitrip member 584, as well
as resilient clips similar to the clip m~!mber 530, are disclosed and
discu6sed in detail in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,472,913 and 4,617,770, both of
which are a~signed to the ~ame assignee as the present invention and are
also lncorporated herein by re~erence. In addition to providing for a
~peedy and convenient installation, another ~dvantage of ~uch an
arrangement is that the installer does not have to lean over the edge of
the parapet wall to install ~n attachment fastener for securing the clip
member to the parapet wall. A1ED, the alterna~e arrangement of Figure B
still allows for the inclusion of the optional æheet-like roofing
-12-
membrane 20, which can overlie the tab strip me~ber 584, under the clip
member 530, similar to the arrangement showm in Figure 1, except that the
membrane 20 would extend only ~ver the vertical strip leg 585 ~nd would
be clamped in place by the clip member 530.
The foregoing discussion discloses and describes exemplary
embodiments of the present invention. One ~killed in the art will
readily recognize from such discussion, and from the accompanying
drawings and claims, that various changes, modifications and variations
can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope o~ the
invention as defined in the following claims.
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